We held the Real-World Challenge, Climate Change event hosted by PwC in their Belfast office at Merchant Square on 20 February 2025.
It was an exciting opportunity for the students who took part to hear from industry experts and join a team to tackle the real-world problem of climate change and what is currently being done in Northern Ireland to reduce emissions and produce a greener place to live, all while developing key employability skills!
A presentation was given by Professor John Barry, and we also hosted some Café Conversations with external speakers, who were, Melanie Thrush, Senior Engineer, geotechnical team, ARUP, Claire Shortt, Belfast City Council, Amy Bell, Acting Climate NI Manager, Climate Northern Ireland, Jason Calvert, Director in Economics Consulting, PwC, and John McCann, Estates Manager – Environmental, Queen’s University Belfast.
It was a busy, and fulfilling programme for the students who took part, and it gave them a chance to use their critical thinking skills to come up with some positive solutions to an important topic and an opportunity to interact with a broad range of students from across Queen’s.
Big thanks to everyone who took part!
Hitesh Gidwani, MSc Finance Student Queen’s University Belfast.
Had an eye-opening experience at the Real-World Challenge hosted by PwC, where we tackled climate change solutions alongside industry experts and students from across Queen’s!
One of the most thought-provoking tasks? Creating “The Best & Worst Newspaper Headlines of 2050.”
“Are you breathing or gasping for air? It’s official—humanity is ending… (Pay $5000 to read full article)”
A dark yet satirical take on how human greed persists even when survival is at stake. Will we let our planet deteriorate to a point where clean air becomes a luxury? Or will we take action today?
Gained valuable insights from expert speakers.
Collaborated with an amazing team to brainstorm real-world solution.
Realized how even small daily actions can create a massive impact.
3 Simple Steps YOU Can Take Today to Fight Climate Change:
1️. Ditch plastic bottles – Carry a reusable one!
2. Rethink fast fashion. The fashion industry causes 10% of global carbon emissions. Buying 1 second-hand outfit instead of new reduces waste, pollution, and guilt. (Plus, vintage is cooler anyway.)
3. Sort your waste like your life depends on it. Because, well… it kinda does. Landfills release methane, which is 25x worse than CO₂. Proper recycling = less toxic air = fewer “gasping for air” headlines.
The future is still in our hands. Will we change the headline before it’s too late?
Big thanks to PwC UK, Careers Queen’s University Belfast, and all Lynsey Foster for this incredible opportunity! Looking forward to more impactful experiences ahead.
Lynsey Foster, Employer Engagement Team, Careers, Queen’s University Belfast
We hosted our Real-World Challenge, Climate Change event in PwC’s beautiful Merchant Square offices. Taking a multidisciplinary approach, the students considered what is currently being done in NI to reduce emissions and become a greener place to live.
We welcomed several external speakers who joined our discussions and shared what their organisations are currently doing to tackle the climate emergency.
It was a very inspiring day with a lot of great takeaways! Thanks to each of our speakers for joining us and having some great discussions with our students – John Barry, Amy Bell, Melanie Thrush, Jason Calvert, John McCann, and Claire Shortt.
A big thank you to Abigail Darwent and the PwC team for hosting us and to Climate Northern Ireland, Arup, Belfast City Council.
Find out more about the Real-World Challenge Climate Change. https://go.qub.ac.uk/realworldchallenge